In recent years we have seen astonishing progress in new and wireless technology: You can check-in for flights at the gate with your mobile phone, program your TV box with it or even switch off the lights at your house remotely. And, as I was told at a technology briefing session last week, that’s just the start. What started at home is now coming to your office.

See that new telephone next to you? Looks like the old one, but now it’s Voice-over-IP. And in a few years you might not even have server equipment in your office – as it’s all in the cloud! And what’s that about this new “meeting room booking” system? It’s connected to your outlook and suddenly there is a panel outside the room asking you to start your meeting and if you don’t in a timely fashion, the room is again available. Quite efficient!

This is just the beginning and it will change the way we work and hence the office we work in, although it might not be as quick as some visionaries think – as there is always the human factor. But talking to both investor and corporate clients alike, the question of how technology changes the future of the office and what that means for their real estate strategies today to be successful tomorrow, is big on their agendas.

One more reason for us to dig deeper for the answers as part of our Offices 2020 research program!